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external lecturers, who surprised Assoc. Prof. Yizhar Or: unidirectional: The students
us with their willingness to “Our faculty members read, listen, or watch and try
adjust and to contribute to the adapted to the new to understand the material
effort. situation and were totally independently; and learning
"Our faculty, specifically, faces committed. It wasn’t a is evaluated through written
a dual challenge, because we natural transition for some. assignments submitted to the
are operating an international We have older and retired instructor and, in many cases,
undergraduate program and faculty members, lecturers through a final exam. Group
all our courses are taught with young families…” discussions were, of course,
simultaneously in English by impossible.
a group of English־speaking lecturers after the courses are A significant change took place
lecturers. Some of our students completed". when mass communication
got stuck in different parts of the means and infrastructure
world־and they are continuing A long history developed and became
their studies as usual. They are universally available, in
really learning from a distance". Surprisingly enough, distance particular, with the Internet’s
What was your own experience, learning has a long history. Its widespread use. Learning
as a lecturer? earliest roots can be traced can now be interactive,
"Despite the advantages of to correspondence education synchronized, and take the
digital technology, I really in the 19th century, when it form of a dialogue־even across
miss the interaction with the enabled residents of remote vast distances. With this type
students, which cannot be settlements and members of of learning, regardless of
replaced or simulated־the eye the lower classes to acquire whether or not it is combined
contact, the sense that they an education. Since then, with lecture־style instruction,
are really with me. Most of my distance learning has evolved the student learns not only the
students turn their cameras off hand in hand with emerging course material, but also how to
during class, which makes it technological developments־ use the Web and the resources
even harder to teach. Personally, using audio tapes and radio it provides. Online learning
at the beginning and at the end broadcasts, television programs, also generates databases and
of each class I ask my students video tapes, and then the reusable materials, developing
to turn on their cameras". Internet. and creating new knowledge.
Do you think the Faculty will Over the years, distance According to Dr. Amalia Ran,
support online learning in the learning was characteristically who studies online learning at
future? the MOFET Institute in Tel־Aviv,
"Without a doubt. We have the first university to permit free
been trying to digitize course use of its online courses without
materials on an on־going compromising its copyright was
basis, which caused concern for MIT. In 2002, UNESCO adopted
some. The current crisis forced the term "massive online open
everyone to give it a try, leading courses" to describe learning
to the realization that online resources that are freely
teaching is possible. Another available for non־commercial
advantage is that most of the use. A new kind of connection
digital materials will remain formed between students of all
available to students and types and the information they
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering | MEgazine | 19
